With Sen. Mary Landrieu under fire over residency questions, any legal challenge to her candidacy would need to be filed today, according to the Lousiana Secretary of State’s office.
The window for such challenges “ends at 4:30 pm today,” Meg Casper, the press secretary for Louisiana Secretary of State Tom Schedler said.
Recent press reports indicate that Landrieu maintains a residence in Washington, D.C., but may not have a residence in Louisiana. Landrieu’s leading Republican opponents, Representative Bill Cassidy (R-LA) and Colonel Rob Maness, have made Landrieu’s questionable residency status a point of attack over the past several days.
Senator Pat Roberts (R-KS) faced similar questions of his residency prior to the August 5 primary in which he defeated Tea Party-endorsed challenger Milton Wolf by a 48% to 41% margin. Under Kansas law, questions surrounding a candidate’s eligibility to be listed on the ballot are determined by the Secretary of State.
Wolf filed a complaint with the Kansas Secretary of State alleging Roberts was not a resident of Kansas and therefore not eligible to appear on the Republican primary ballot. A three-person panel named by the Kansas Secretary of State rejected Wolf’s complaint, and determined that Roberts was eligible, and his name was placed on the ballot.
Landrieu, Cassidy, and Maness all qualified with the Louisiana Secretary of State before the qualifying period closed last Friday, August 22.
“A registered voter can present evidence that a candidate has illegally qualified to [their] parish district attorney, who will determine if the case is valid. If so, he can file an action [in state court to disqualify the candidate],” Casper said.
Neither Maness’s nor Cassidy’s campaigns responded to requests for comment about whether they intend to file a legal challenge.